Grant: Don’t expect Daniels to pull off major move in Nashville, but Napoli, Josh, ace are on back burner

The Rangers have a long to-do list as they enter the MLB winter meetings in
Nashville, Tenn. Still, the most surprising development of the meetings might be
if general manager Jon Daniels goes anywhere near the microphone in the Opryland
Hotel ballroom set up for major announcements.

It’s just not the Rangers’ style. The Rangers use the winter meetings for
fact-finding and to advance conversations but rarely make decisions. In Daniels’
seven previous winter meetings as the Rangers’ GM, perhaps the biggest official
announcement to come from the club was the salary dump of Kevin Millwood after
2009.

So, with that in mind, here is a look at the major issues the Rangers face as
they head to Nashville for three days of rumors, innuendo and, most likely,
little action:

Just Joshing

The Rangers must decide once and for all whether they are in on Josh
Hamilton. According to sources, Hamilton has indicated a desire to return to the
Rangers, but the length of a contract could be a real sticking point. The
Rangers would probably prefer to go no more than four years; Hamilton had been
seeking a seven-year deal.

Hamilton’s agent, Mike Moye, has not leaked info about his talks with any
teams, making the market appear a little flat. The true market may become a
little more evident in Nashville, but it won’t be surprising if the Hamilton
situation drags on.

Daniels has said that if Hamilton goes elsewhere, adding an outfielder is
“not necessarily” a top priority for the Rangers. They have interest in
Arizona’s Justin Upton but have no desire to trade top prospect Jurickson Profar
for him. If the Diamondbacks are more willing to talk about Mike Olt, the
Rangers might move in this direction.

The ace

The Rangers have been among the most aggressive teams in pursuing free-agent
starter Zack Greinke. But they are competing with the Los Angeles Angels, with
whom Greinke finished the 2012 season, and the bursting-with-dollars Los Angeles
Dodgers. If the Rangers are to land Greinke, it’s going to take the best
financial deal — and we’re talking gross dollars, not net.

The question is: If Greinke moves on, will the Rangers consider other
“lesser” free agents or will they give rookie Martin Perez a rotation
spot?

Protecting the plate

Agent Brian Grieper has now met with all three of catcher Mike Napoli’s most
aggressive pursuers: the Rangers, Boston and Seattle. Of all the situations the
Rangers are sorting through, Napoli’s future is the one most likely to be
decided at the winter meetings.

He is seeking a three- or four-year commitment, and his leverage improved
Thursday when free agent Russell Martin agreed to a two-year, $17 million deal
with Pittsburgh. The Rangers had pursued Martin, as well. Taking Martin off the
market makes a very thin market that much thinner.

If Napoli moves on, the Rangers may have to discuss 36-year-old A.J.
Pierzynski or former Ranger Rod Barajas or consider rejoining conversations with
Toronto about J.P. Arencibia, John Buck or prospect Travis d’Arnaud.

Stocking the bullpen

Daniels announced addressing the bullpen as one of the club’s priorities at
the season’s conclusion because Mike Adams, Koji Uehara and Scott Feldman were
all free agents. A month later, the need became even greater when the team
announced that Alexi Ogando was moving to the starting rotation.

The Rangers have added some veterans on minor league deals, but the top big
league target in a rather thin market is right-hander Joakim Soria. Soria is
coming back from Tommy John surgery and probably won’t be available until May at
the earliest.

This might be the area where the Rangers most aggressively pursue trade
conversations.

The Rule 5 draft

Entering the meetings, the Rangers have 39 players on the 40-man roster. It
gives them flexibility to take a player in the Rule 5 draft Thursday, the
meetings’ concluding event. As they continue to search for ways to find bullpen
help, the draft offers an extremely inexpensive opportunity. It takes only
$50,000 to pluck an eligible player left off another team’s 40-man roster in the
draft. The catch: The Rangers would have to keep the player on the 25-man roster
all year or offer him back to his previous club.

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